Most people are afraid of snakes. But when a snake slithers into your presence, it also often escapes speedily into thin air, and you might not see it again. Does it mean snakes are afraid of humans?
Snakes are afraid of humans because their strong sense of smell detects humans as predators. The first reaction when a snake encounters you is to retreat and hide. However, if it feels threatened by your movements, it can attack you to defend itself.
In this article, we explore the reasons snakes are afraid of humans.
Are Snakes More Afraid of Us Than We Are of Them?
When roaming around searching for prey, snakes rely on their strong sense of smell. Because they have no nose, they flicker out their forked tongue, which picks up scent particles in the air.
When they return the tongue to the mouth, Jacobson’s organ sends signals to the brain for interpretation. From there, the snake can tell whether the particles are from prey or predator.
In addition to smell, snakes also use heat signatures to determine the shape and size of other organisms.
When you are around a snake, it detects you as a predator from the smell. And because you are a warm-blooded animal, your high heat signature gives it cues that you are a large organism. This scares the snake, and it’ll want to avoid your presence at all costs.
Even if you fail to notice the snake, its first reaction is to run away when it senses your presence.
Why Do Snakes Attack if They’re Afraid of Humans?
When a snake encounters you, its first defense is always to hide. But if it feels cornered, threatened, or provoked, it might use other defense mechanisms such as:
- Releasing a foul-smelling substance called musk
- Spreading their hoods to appear bigger, e.g., cobras
- Rattling the end of their tails
- Hissing and removing their fangs
- Biting in extreme cases of provocation
The best action is to stay calm and let the snake escape without being combative. If you want to repel it from your compound or house, you can do the following:
- Create incense smoke.
- Mow the lawn and block all hiding spots.
- Get rid of snake prey such as rodents.
Are Pet Snakes Afraid of Humans?
All snakes naturally dislike humans because they’re predators. However, when you pet a snake, it gets used to your scent and becomes calmer around humans.
Although it cannot get emotional like other pets, a snake also gets accustomed to human contact.
Final Thoughts
Snakes are intimidating, but they find you more intimidating. They’ll mostly run away when they sense you. Unless you find a snake in the house, you should let it be and avoid provoking it.
However, if you have a pet snake, it will eventually get used to your scent, so you don’t have to wonder about scaring it.